Diamond Comic Distributors announces a celebration of comics, comic shops, and pop-culture in October with the third annual Halloween ComicFest (HCF) event! Communities are encouraged to check out their local comic shop and get free comics while also participating in shop’s special Halloween events such as costume contests, sales, character appearances and more on Saturday, October 25th, 2014!

During Halloween ComicFest, adults and kids can go into a local participating comic shop and get free Halloween and horror themed comics and mini-comics published specifically for Halloween ComicFest. This year there are 19 titles available to choose from that are great for kids and adults with twelve full-sized comics and seven mini-comics. Titles for this year include: DC’s Scooby Doo Team-Up with Batman#1 , Marvel’s Secret Wars #1, Afterlife with Archie #1, My Little Pony, Hero Cats, Rachel Rising and other haunting and fun tales.

This year, retailers will also be selling HCF mini-comics in packs of 20 copies for fans to purchase and pass out on Halloween to trick-or-treaters, providing an entertaining story for kids that also lasts longer than candy. The mini-comic packs will be available to pre-order from the July PREVIEWS catalog found only at comic shops starting June 25th. Pre-ordering allows fans to order as many of the packs they want and ensures they will get them once they are available in early October.

“This year we want communities to participate in the Halloween ComicFest events at their local comic shop, which really is a great destination to get the latest comics and pop-culture items, meet new friends, and celebrate in Halloween fun,” said Halloween ComicFest Spokesperson, Jason Blanchard. “What makes this year unique for Halloween ComicFest are the HCF Mini Packs available for fans to purchase and use not only as a healthier alternative to candy on Halloween, but as an opportunity to pass on the fun of discovering and reading comics to the next generation.”

Designed to celebrate comic shops as unique community businesses, and reach new customers, Halloween ComicFest helps retailers and the entire industry springboard into the end of the year holiday selling season. Comic fans are encouraged to check out www.halloweencomicfest.com over the coming months for more information on the event and local retailer activities. Fans can also get the most up-to-date information regarding all the festivities from the Halloween ComicFest Facebook and Twitter.